I first glimpsed Jaeger LeCoultre’s Day and Night watch from
their Rendez-Vous collection in an ad on the back cover of a fashion magazine, and although I don’t particularly care for
watches or Diane Kruger, I tore away the page and kept it after throwing away
(and by that I naturally mean recycling) the magazine. And I kept going back to
it because I couldn’t help admiring the simple elegance of the shot, and of
course the watch itself.
There is something very Grace Kelly-esque about Miss Kruger
in this campaign: a timeless sophistication and beauty that can only come from an
innate sense of poise. I know next to
nothing about wristwatches and until I saw the ad I hadn’t even heard about Jaeger
LeCoultre (the pronunciation of which I probably butcher in my head) but I know
a handsome object when I see it, and this watch is beyond striking.
The mechanism is auto-winding, the round panel is surrounded
by diamonds, and there is an art deco sun and moon decoration to (redundantly
but beautifully) indicate the time of day. The watch connoisseurs will probably
protest at my feeble attempt to describe the specifications but the fact of the
matter is that I find this watch admirable simply because it looks beautiful.
When I searched for a price quote I was crest-fallen; I’m not
as naïve not to have some idea of how exorbitantly expensive luxury watches can
be, but I wasn’t expecting a small fortune. I don’t know if the price mark
reflects the intricacies of the mechanism, or the diamonds, or Diane Kruger’s
salary, or it serves the perpetuation of the brand’s exclusivity, or all of
these things combined, but if I were ever gifted one I certainly wouldn’t turn
it down, savoir vivre be damned.
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